If you are about to read this article on TLS Vs SSL either you are a technical person or an individual who is striving to identify the internet security’s technical jargon. Understanding this jargon can be boring however we have crafted a blog post that will easily explain to you the difference between TLS Vs SSL.
What’s the Difference Between TLS Vs SSL?
Secure Socket Layer (SSL) and its newer version Transport Layer Security (TLS), are cryptographic protocols that offer security. The current SSL version is 3.0, which is broadly supported by web servers and browsers. But, TLS v1.2 and v1.3 are more reliable than the newest version of SSL.
These cryptographic protocols authenticate data transfer among the servers, users, systems, and applications. For instance: TLS and SSL encrypt the online data which gets transferred between a web server and your device.
Additionally, you can read this blog post on what is the difference between SSH Vs SSL.
How TLS and SSL Establish Connections?
To better know the difference between how TLS Vs SSL operates, you will need to know how TLS and SSL establish connections. An SSL handshake establishes a connection through a port. Whereas on the other hand, a TLS connection facilitates implicit connection through a protocol.
This handshake is also called cipher suites. Though there are various differences between TLS and SSL, the major difference between SSL and TLs is the cipher suites. The security of your internet connection depends on these cipher suites.
A cipher suite consists of a key exchange algorithm. These algorithms are the authentication/ validation algorithm, bulk encryption algorithm, and message authentication code (MAC) algorithm.
Each and every version of SSL and TLS have their own supported set of cipher suites. As and when the newer versions of these protocols are developed, they contain much more secure cipher suites that remarkably enhance the security and performance of the internet connection.
Now’s look at the summary of difference between TLS Vs SSL:
| SSL | TLS |
| The full form of SSL is Secure Socket Layer | The full form of TLS is Transport Layer Security |
| Netscape developed the first version of SSL in 1995 | Internet Engineering Taskforce (IETF) developed the first version in 1999 |
| SSL is a cryptographic protocol that builds secure communication between the web server and the client. This is an explicit connection. | TLS is likewise too a cryptographic protocol that builds secure communication between the web server and the client. This is an implicit connection. |
| Currently, there are three versions of SSL: 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 | There are four versions of TLS: 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 |
| All three SSL versions are vulnerable. | As of March 2020, Two TLS versions 1.0 and 1.1 are disregarded. |
Important Differences Between TLS Vs SSL
You need to be tech-savvy to detect the basic differences between SSL and TLS.
Having said that, let’s look at the primary difference between TLS and SSL.
Cipher Suites
The SSL protocol supports the Fortezza cipher suite whereas the TLS protocol does not provide support for the cipher suite. TLS sticks to an enhanced standardization process that helps in adapting to new cipher suites (RC4, Triple DES, AES, IDEA, etc ) with ease.
Record Protocol
SSL utilizes the Message Authentication Code (MAC) whereas TLS utilizes HMAC which is a hash-based authentication code that encrypts messages.
Handshake Process
In an SSL protocol, the hash calculation consists of the master secret and pad, while in the TLS, the hashes are calculated over a handshake message.
Message Authentication
SSL message validation connects the vital details and application data in a more enhanced manner. In the meantime, the TLS version solely depends on the HMAC Hash-based Message Authentication Code.
Benefits of TLS Protocol
- It prevents threat actors from interrupting the communication between the server and the user.
- It also avoid stalkers from eavesdropping on any conversation.
- TLS doesn’t add latency to a website’s traffic.
- TLS utilizes asymmetric encryption.
Should You Get a TLS Certificate or an SSL Certificate
The difference between TLS Vs SSL is minute. Both the cryptographic protocols execute the same task of encrypting the data exchanged between a server and the user.
There is no uncertainty that TLS is an updated and much more reliable version of SSL. However, SSL certificates are broadly available on the webserver.
We hope this blog post on TLS Vs SSL helped you understand the difference between two cryptographic technologies.
Additionally, we at 10GB Hosting offer SSL certificates.